A Reason To Fight
by just.pretty.words
Summary: (Sequel to A Rare Gem)Well, Aly-Jay is back in Japan and not just to be with the guys. She finds herself being invited to the Demon World Tournament by none other than Mukuro. Will AJ be able to control her powers? Will she be able to tell the difference between her dreams and reality? Will Hiei finally be able to open up and admit his feelings? And if he does, will AJ accept them?
1. Chapter 1

I shut my eyes as tightly as I could before opening them again. It didn't work. I'm still in Japan. It must have been at least ten minutes of me standing in my old room back at Genkai's place, hoping it was all a dream. Feeling completely defeated, I started to unpack. As I started putting my clothes in my drawers I thought about how I got back here.

_There he was. Standing there. Wearing normal human clothes. Hiei. My heart broke all over again as I watched him standing there. I didn't say anything. I couldn't say anything. And it appeared he couldn't either. _

_ "Uh," I heard Trevor say as he looked back and forth between us. "Do you know him?"_

_ "No," I said, looking back at Trevor. "I'll see you next week okay?" _

_ Straightening my shoulders and lifting my chin, I refused to look at Hiei as I walked past. He just stood there, his eyes following me as I walked by, but didn't follow me. It confused me, but I refused to spend another second thinking about him in any way, shape, or form. I thought I was able to do it, that is, until Hiei appeared in front of me as I reached to open my car door. _

_ I refused to speak to him so I only stared. He stared back for a couple seconds before finally speaking. "You need to come back home."_

_ "I am home," I said, trying to reach past him. _

_ He adjusted so he blocked my handle. "You need to come back." _

_ "I don't _need_ to do anything. If I _need_ to do something, it's to drive home." I successfully pushed Hiei aside to climb into my rather gross PT cruiser. As I put on my seat belt I couldn't help but think that Hiei had let me push him aside. That was irritating. _

_ As I drove home I could feel Hiei following me through the trees. Fuck British Columbia and their forestry, making it easy for Hiei to move around. I did my best to put my focus on the road rather than looking for Hiei among the trees, which was surprisingly hard. What was he doing here? Why was he here in Canada? Why was he wearing normal clothes? Were the other guys here as well? What the hell is going on?_

_ It took me fifteen minutes to get back home and I had questions going through my mind the whole time. When I pulled into the drive way I more questions popped into my head. What was this Toyota doing here? Was it the guys?_

_ I forced myself to take a deep breath before I climbed out of the car. Trying to be as quiet as I could, I entered through the side door and went into my room. If that's what you want to call it anyways. It was really just a small office, right next to the door and laundry room. Needless to say, it can get pretty loud around here sometimes. Plus, the room is so small that only a single bed and a desk could fit in here. That being said, I was forced to keep my clothes in my luggage bags. _

_ Just as I started to put my books on the desk, Claire screamed out for me from the kitchen. "AJ! We have guests, make some tea!"_

_ Right, and the evil step-mother couldn't do that herself? "Coming," I called back while trying to sound sweet. I sighed as I pulled off my coat to hang it on the back of my chair. _

_ "Hurry up!"_

_ Balling my hands into fists, I closed my eyes and pictured myself punching Claire in the face. Ah, much better. I started to work my way to the kitchen while trying to remain calm. When I finally reached the kitchen, I couldn't help but freeze in the door way. Shit. The guys were here, all of them. There they were, Kurama, Kuwabara, Yusuke, sitting at the kitchen table… _

_ I remained frozen as Kurama stood up and walked over to me. When he was within reach, he held his hand out for handshake. "Hi, you must be Aly-Jay," he said with perfect English. "I'm Kurama. I'm part of the the Tokyo Ballet company." _

_ Whaaa-?_

_ "AJ!" Claire snapped, bringing me back to reality. "It's rude to stare."_

_ I shook my head slightly before taking Kurama's hand. "It's nice to meet you."_

_ Silence. _

_ "The tea?" Claire said. While she tried to sound sweet, it was clear she was getting really impatient. _

_ I went to go set up the tea kettle while Kurama went back to his seat. As I started to put water in the kettle there was a knock on the front door. _

_ "That must be the other guest," Claire said as she got up to answer the door. I felt my whole body go tense as I heard the door open. "Hello? Oh hi, sorry, I didn't see you right away. Whoa, you must be at least the same height as AJ." _

_ Yusuke snorted at the comment while I actually slapped the palm of my hand against my forehead. I looked over at table and noticed that Kuwabara looked really confused. Looks like someone doesn't know any English. I really can't believe Claire sometimes. As Claire came back to the kitchen with Hiei I tried my best not to look over at him. My chest went tight as Hiei took a seat. Oh god, I _feel_ Hiei's presence. All of a sudden the kettle got really heavy so it slipped out of my hand and landed in the sink. _

_ "Careful!" Claire snapped before turning back to the guys with a smile. _

_ I muttered an apology before pouring some of the water out and going to turn it on. As I waited for the water to boil, I went to go take a seat at the table. I looked over at all the guys—besides Hiei of course—in silence. Awkward… _

_ "So," Claire started. "You guys are from the Tokyo Ballet or something?"_

_ "Yes," Kurama said. "We've seen some of Aly-Jay's performances while she was in Japan. She's an amazing dancer and we'd be honoured to have her join our company." _

_ What are they getting at? I did my best to keep a straight face as I looked over at Kurama. I stayed quiet since I wasn't sure of what to say. _

_ "Well isn't that nice of them, AJ?" Claire said with a fake smile. "Right, AJ?"_

_ "Sure," I said as I got up. The water began to boil so I went to make the tea. _

_ "Here, I'll help you." Claire got up as well. Say what? Help me? As I grabbed the tea pot Claire when to grab some tea bags. When we met at the island she leaned into me. "You should really take the offer." I looked over at Claire in shock. "I mean, think about it. You haven't danced in years; you're kind of out of shape. If anything, this is your only chance of getting into a dance school." _

_ There we go, now she's back to normal. I only stared at her before taking the tea pot over to the table. Claire brought the milk and sugar and motioned me to go get the tea cups. "I've asked the other guys if they wanted tea, but I'm not sure of your answer," Claire said as she took a seat. "Would you like some tea, uh?"_

_ I turned to Claire to let her know that Hiei doesn't know any English. But I was seriously surprised. _

_ "It's Hiei," he said in English almost as good as Kurama's. "And yes, I would take some tea."_

_ "Make sure you grab him a cup, AJ."_

_ I couldn't help it any longer. I looked over at Hiei. Oh god, he was wearing a black wife beater and jeans, and he looked good in it. I couldn't help it; I imagined a different scenario of Hiei coming back. Of him pressing me against my car, leaning into me. All of a sudden Hiei looked over at me in shock. I frowned at him in confused before I realized his reaction. He was using telepathy! That jerk-face! While I continued to frown at him, I imagined a brick wall to block him off. Of course, I pictured that right after I imagined a rather large middle finger. _

_ "Aly-Jay!" Claire snapped. "The cups?"_

_ "Sorry," I muttered before getting up to grab them. I could see the guys through the corner of my eyes. All of their expressions screamed "awkward." _

_ "Uh, would you like some help?" Yusuke asked in Japanese. _

_ I replied in Japanese without even thinking about it. "No, I'll be fine. Don't worry about it." _

_ "AJ," Claire said while trying to sound sweet. "It's rude to speak Chinese when not all of us understand." _

_ "It's Japanese," I said as I placed some cups on the table. _

_ "Either way, it's rude." _

_ I forced myself to take a deep breath before placing the other cups on the table. "So," I started, "The Tokyo Ballet Company or something?"_

_ "That's correct," Kurama said._

_ "I'll go." _

_ Tea didn't last much longer after that. Knowing that I agreed to go, Claire couldn't get me out fast enough. When I got up to grab my bags Kurama offered to help and no matter how often I tried, Kurama wouldn't take no for an answer. I tried to hide my embarrassment as he entered my room. I also tried to ignore Kurama's raised eyebrow when he watched my go to my luggage and refold clothes. _

_ It took a total of ten minutes for me to finish and have all my bags in their rented car. Since the airport was an hour away, I decided to call my dad on the road. He works so much so I was a little surprised that he answered. While he did ask if I was okay with this sudden decision about a hundred times, he seemed to agree that this was the best choice for me. It was a choice that would be good for my health, both mentally and physically. I agreed. _

_ We were almost at the airport when something caught my eye. "Wait, pull into there." I pointed to the Tim Horton's. How very Canadian of me… They seemed confused as they pulled into the parking lot. It didn't help that I practically climbed over Kuwabara to get out. I just went in and out so I could grab a tin of coffee. As a Canadian, I have to love this stuff, and I do. I'm not sure when I'll be back, and in case I don't, I'm going to need to enjoy a nice cup of Canadian coffee. _

_ "Is that coffee?" Kuwabara asked. _

_ I tucked it under my arm. "Yeah, what's it to yah?" I playfully stuck my tongue out at him which made everyone laugh. _

_ Well, almost everyone. _

A knock on the door brought me back to the present.

"Yes?" I called out, turning so I faced the door.

"There's some food on the table," Kurama said. "I figured you might be hungry after our travels."

I looked down at my stomach as it let out a loud growl. "I'll be down in a minute, thank you."

After I finished putting away the shirt I had in my hands I started to make my way downstairs. When I got to the bottom I could hear the guys talking from the kitchen.

It was Kuwabara's voice I heard first. "What do you mean I can't have any?"

"Did you see how skinny she is?" Yusuke. "It makes her look really unhealthy so we need to fatten her up a bit."

Great… I took a deep breath before heading into the kitchen. As I started to enter Yusuke and Kuwabara started to head out. Wanting to see how they'd react I asked, "Aren't you guys going to have anything to eat?"

"Nah," Yusuke said as he waved me off. "We've already eaten."

Before Kuwabara could say anything, Yusuke started to push him out the door. I watched them leave before turning back to the kitchen. Kurama was still there and had placed a plate on the island along with some chopsticks. He smiled at me softly which made me want to slap him... Annnnd now I feel guilty. While I know Kurama is trying to be nice and everything, I couldn't help but feel like they were all pitying me. I don't like it.

I took a seat where Kurama placed the plate as I thanked him. After taking a look at all the food on the table I started to slowly fill my plate. It all smelled so good and it took all my will power not to start shoving my face.

"Excuse me," Kurama said as he headed to the door, "I need to give my mother a call."

Since I had food in my mouth as he left, I only nodded at him. I took a couple more bites before looking back at the doorway. Hoping the coast was clear, I threw my will power out the window and started to eat at much as I could. By the time I was done almost everything was gone and in my stomach. Although, I probably should have taken my time. I made sure all the dishes were washed and that the left overs were in the fridge.

When I finally left the kitchen, I noticed that all the guys were in the living room watching TV. Had they been there the whole time? I took a seat on the couch's arm, next to Kuwabara. I looked down at him before saying, "There's some left overs in the fridge if you're still hungry."

His face lightened up as if Christmas came early. "Really?"

I nodded and felt the side of my lips curve up in a half smile. After I watched Kuwabara rush off to the kitchen I risked taking a look at Hiei at the window seat. He was watching me so I quickly looked away and at the TV. The longer I stared at the show the more uneasy I began to feel. My stomach began to ache so I rubbed it while I winced.

"Are you okay?" Kurama asked.

"Yeah, I just-" I didn't get a chance to finish. I quickly covered my mouth and ran upstairs to the nearest bathroom. Thankfully my speed was still "normal" so I made it with time to pull my hair up before I became sick. I've made a horrible mistake by eating too much and too fast.

As I began to wash my mouth, there was a soft knock on the door.

"Are you okay?" Kurama asked.

"Yeah, sorry," I called back softly. "I just ate too much. I guess my body isn't used to it."

"You sure?"

I splashed some cold water on my face. "Yes."

I heard Kurama head back downstairs. Wanting to make sure my stomach had settled, I stayed in the bathroom a little longer by brushing my teeth and using some mouthwash. When I was sure I wasn't going to be sick again I headed back downstairs. I had barely made it into the living room when Kurama handed me a glass filled with a carbonated drink.

"It's ginger ale," he said. "It should help with your stomach."

"Thanks," I said as I grabbed it. "Some things never seem to change, huh, Kurama."

He just smiled at me softly. I took a seat next to Yusuke as I began to sip my drink. It wasn't long before I began to feel restless and awkward from the lack of conversation.

"So," I started as I put my glass aside. "What has everyone been up to? How's Yukina? Genkai?" As soon as I said Genkai's name all the guys seemed to avoid eye contact. "What? What is it?"

"I have to... go... somewhere," Yusuke said as he got up to leave.

"Did I do something?" I asked after he left.

"No, of course not," Kurama said out of comfort. "But I guess now would be a good time to tell you why we've brought you back."

"I agree," I said, giving Kurama all of my attention. "So what's going on?"

"Well, a few things have happened while you were away."

"I'm not surprised. I've been gone for two years. But stop beating around the bush," I said with impatience. "What's happened?"

Kurama looked away for a second. "Genkai has passed away."

It took a couple seconds for the news to sink in. "Genkai passed away? How?"

"It was just her time. She was much older than she seems."

I looked down at my hands. I couldn't believe it. It always felt like Genkai would live forever. "I'm sorry I wasn't here... when it happened."

Kurama waved me off gently. "I'm sure she would have preferred you to not be around. She wasn't really much for crowds."

"True..."

"There's more." Kurama said so I motioned for him to go on. "Genkai left a will and she's left you and Yukina her land."

What? Did I hear that right? "...What?"

"Well, technically she left it to all of us, but she was very clear in making sure that you and Yukina keep an eye on the place. To make sure that we don't make a total mess." He smiled at me softly.

"Um," I said. "Okay?"

"I'm sure you have nothing to worry about. It shouldn't be too much pressure or anything."

"I hope not." I tried to make it sound like I was joking but I don't think I was very convincing. There was an unsettling feeling in my stomach and I needed to do something else to get rid of it. I got up and started to head to the stairs. "I'm going to go finish unpacking."

Through the corner of my eye I saw that the window seat was empty. When I double checked, I saw that Hiei was gone. Where did he go, and when? I pushed the thought aside and made my way to my room. I took a quick look around and felt like something was different, but I wasn't sure what it was. It probably took me way longer than it should have but when I turned to place my kobo next to my bed I saw it. It was my pointe shoes and they were lying on my pillow. I didn't take them to Canada with me so I didn't unpack them, and I'm pretty sure they weren't there before. Who put them there? Then I got an idea.

I rubbed my stomach, hoping it would help me tell if I was up for dancing. It felt fine, and I was feeling a little restless. Could I even still dance? I guess there's only one way to find out. I searched through my bottom drawer to see if my ballet attire was still in there. Since I didn't take everything with me back to Canada I'd hoped it would be; and it was.

After I got dressed I made my way to my usual place to dance. I bumped into Yusuke on my way and stopped to talk to him. "I'm sorry," I said to him after I gently grabbed his arm. "I know you were close to Genkai."

"It's okay," he said, avoiding eye contact. "Shit happens."

We stood there awkwardly for a couple seconds. I couldn't just leave with that being said so I tried something else. "So, what have you been up to?"

"Nothing really. I opened that ramen shop that I was talking about."

"Really?" I was surprised. "That's amazing, good for you."

"Thanks. I usually work evenings though, when people get off work."

"Sounds like good business."

"It can be. Keiko comes to see me every now and then."

"So you and Keiko are still together?"

"Yeah..." he said, suddenly going sheepish. "I kind of made her a promise when we were kids."

I raised an eyebrow at that and grinned. "Oh? What kind of promise."

Yusuke smiled and scratched the back of his head. "That I'd marry her."

I actually clapped and laughed softly. "That's really sweet. And you plan on keeping that promise."

"Yeah," he started to go red. "I mean, I do... well, uh."

"Ah," I said raising my hand to make a 'stop' motion. "I get it. You don't need to say another word."

Both of us laughed softly before we went our separate ways. Whoa, Yusuke really has grown up over the past two years... I opened the door to my usual place to dance and sighed softly. Nothing seems to have changed.

Because I haven't had a good stretch since I've left I took the extra time to warm up my legs. Plus, my shoes had stiffened up from the lack of use so I needed to break them in again. When I finally put on my shoes I did a couple more exercises to make sure my shoes were broken in and that my ankles were warmed up.

Unfortunately, when I stood up I got a better view of myself in the mirror. I knew I lost too much weight while I was gone but I actually looked sick and I didn't like it. When I raised my arms up I could see my ribs poking through my leotard. I quickly lowered my arms again and looked over at my iPod. I knew the perfect dance that fit my mood, hopefully I remember it.

I put on the music of my Dying Swan variation and let my body follow the music. I closed my eyes and just let my body do what it needed to do. By the time I was done I had to lay on my back and take a deep breath. While I had considered this place my home, I didn't feel the same anymore. My body felt like it was getting ready to run off again.

No. I can't run off again. They made the effort of bringing me back and I can't throw their work away so quickly. I had to stay, I had to work on my powers. I've obviously been dealing with some personal issues so running away probably wouldn't be the best thing. But space sounds good... Having some personal moments would be a good idea.

After taking a deep breath I sat back up to take off my pointe shoes. Not ready to head back to the house, I started to make sure that my shoes were broken in completely. As I sat there, cross legged, my mind began to wonder. Unfortunately, the longer I began to daydream, the less focus I became on my pointe shoes. _Back the fuck off. I'm done with you!_

I continued to bend the arches of my shoes, but as I did so I heard a ripping sound. Surprised, I looked down at my shoes and noticed that I had bent it too far, causing the insole to rip off. I gasped in surprise as I stared at the two pieces. I've had these pointe shoes for years and now they're… gone. What am I going to do? Pointe shoes cost a hundred dollars and I don't have that kind of money… Well fuck.

Something caught my eye as I reached for the other shoe. Frightened, I quickly turned to see Hiei standing in the door way. How long as he been standing there? Was he reading my mind?! Just in case, I tried to block him from my mind.

Doing my best to ignore him, I gathered all my stuff and headed for the door. As I tried to squeeze past him, he grabbed my arm, forcing me to stop. When I realized I couldn't pull away, I glared at him.

"What?" I snapped. "Have something you need to say?" Hiei continued to stare at me for a couple seconds before letting go and looking away. "That's what I thought."

I adjusted all the stuff in my arms before heading back to the house. After changing and putting everything away, I looked around my room. My window had been repaired, my lamb replaced. I closed my eyes and imagined my kidnapping. Feeling scared and angry, I looked over at the leg of my bed that I had tried to grab, my bedside table, the window.

_ You don't have control because you were too weak to fight him._

Confused over reality and my dreams, I looked down at my wrists, and more specifically, my bracelets. I don't want to be weak anymore. Grabbing a cardigan, I headed into clearing where I had spent my summer two years ago. Unfortunately, I bumped into Kurama when I got down the stairs.

"Oh good," Kurama said. "There's something else that I needed to tell you. Here, take a seat."

I followed Kurama to the couch. "It's going to be serious isn't it?"

"I guess you could say that." Kurama paused for a second. It seemed like he was trying to gather his words. "There's another reason why we had to bring you back."

"Oh...kay." There wasn't anything else I felt like I could say. It felt like it wasn't going to be good news.

"You've received an invitation while you were gone." An invitation? That's what he's making me feel worried about? "From demon world." Oh... that can't be good.

"What kind of invitation are we talking about here?"

"You remember what the Demon World Tournament is, right?"

"Yeah," I said with a little nod. "It's what Yusuke organized, to find a ruler for Demon World. You have to fight for it, right?"

"I guess you could say that." Kurama paused again. "Well... You've been invited to the tournament."

Why did he seem so serious about this? "Okay. I've gotten an invitation, that doesn't mean I have to actually go, does it?"

Kurama scratched the back of his head and gave a nervous laugh. "Not exactly. This kind of invitation is different. This is something that you can't really turn down."

"Like the Dark Tournament?" I asked. The guys have told me many stories about their "invitation" to that.

"Something like that." Kurama looked around the room for a second.

I narrowed my eyes at him before saying, "You're not telling me something. I can tell."

He smiled at me softly. "I sometimes forget that you're a demon and can sense that kind of thing." Is that how I could tell? "But you're right. There is something else. It was Mukuro that invited you."

I felt my whole body freeze, and I really hoped my face did to. I didn't want my expression to reveal my true feelings. It took me a few seconds before I could say anything. "Mukuro is one of the original three rulers of Demon World, right?"

Kurama gave me a soft look. It almost looked like he was disappointed in me. "You know you don't have to hide anything from me."

My heart actually broke a little. He's right, I shouldn't hide anything from him. Kurama has been nothing but kind to me and I haven't really treated him with the same kind of respect. I got ready to let everything out but the moment I opened my mouth I realized I couldn't do it. If Hiei could be heartless with... whatever we had, so could I. There was obviously nothing from him, so why should there be anything from me.

Suddenly angry, I stood up and headed to the door. "I know. I'm not hiding anything. Now, I was going to head for the walk so I'll... just go do that now."

Kurama stood up as well. "Wait, there's something else." What, is she fucking pregnant? I had to close my eyes and take a deep breath. I'm not taking this very well. "Mukuro left you a physical message. Here." Kurama pulled out a glowing orb of some kind.

I forced myself to reach out and take it. This was a message? "What is it?"

"It's a Spirit of Words. All you need to do is smash it against a wall of some kind, close to the ground. It will show a shadow version of the person giving the message. I can only assume this one will show a shadow of Mukuro."

"Alright," I said as I looked down. It took a lot of will power not to grab it too hard and break it right here. I put it in a pocket and headed out the door. Anger was running through my veins as I made my way to the clearing. Every time I heard or thought of Mukuro I couldn't help but imagine ways of killing her. Wait... was this anger or just jealously...

I made sure I wasn't being followed since I didn't want an audience. The closer I got to the clearing the more anxious I became. I wasn't sure this was going to be a great idea, but it had to be done. I can't be running away for ever. It's time to face my demons… Literally. I had to fight for this.

When I had finally gotten to the middle, I took a deep breath and looked down at my wrists. It's now or never, AJ. It's better sooner, rather than later. Oh god, just do it. I took another deep breath before finally reaching both hands across to the opposite wrists. I touched the inside of both bracelets and watched them fall to the ground.


	2. Chapter 2

I just stood there, staring at my wrists, and waited. It didn't feel like something was going to happen but I knew better. The bracelets have been on me for two years, there has got to be some pent up demon energy in me somewhere. Sure enough, a few seconds later I began to feel a sudden painful tingling sensation run down my back.

Panic began to set in. What if I can't do this? What if I don't have the ability to control fire? What if I _never_ have the ability to control fire? Panic quickly turned to pain, I could feel it in my chest. It was like someone heavy was sitting on me. That's when I began to think about Mukuro again. What business did she have inviting me to the Demon World Tournament? Did she want to flaunt the fact that she had beaten me somehow?

My panic soon changed into anger. All I could picture was this scared up woman laughing at me while I'm on the ground, unable to move. That's when I felt the pain turn into a comforting feeling. The painful tingle didn't hurt anymore, it actually felt like someone was dragging their fingertips down my back. It felt comforting.

I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. As I did so I had an image flash through my mind. It didn't look or feel like I was imagining it myself. This looked so real somehow. I could see myself floating in the clearing. Suddenly I saw flames and waves burst out of my chest. At first they just danced around me, getting used to the idea of working together.

After they danced around together they twisted around me forming this cocoon. That's when I saw they had faces. Water, leaning her face into mine of the left, had her eyes closed and looked at peace. Fire, leaning into me on the right, was looking at me with a smirk on her face. She formed a hand and placed it on my chest. That's when I realized why I could handle my fire side now. I had a reason to fight. I don't want to be weak any more and I had to prove it. Who better to use than Mukuro herself.

When I opened my eyes again I saw that I was still just standing in the clearing. But there was something different now. I did a 360 and realized that most of the trees were burnt down. Did I do that? The trees started to spin around me suddenly. My whole body began to lose energy. I tried to take one step before everything went black and I started to fall to the ground.

Before I fell completely, I felt someone's arms go around me. I felt so weird. While I could hear everything clearly, I couldn't see and my body wasn't responding to what my brain was telling it to do. I tried to touch my face but my arm just stayed limb at my side. Whoever grabbed me slowly placed me on the ground. There was a pause which I used to try and get my body to respond. It didn't, but while I continued to try I could have sworn I felt someone run their fingers through my hair. It was so gentle that I thought I was imagining it.

For some reason I could feel my whole body relax while the fingers continued to run through my hair. As my body started to relax I was able to move my fingers. I took a deep breath as I heard someones voice in my head. _Why would you take those bracelets off alone? You should have made sure someone was with you, to keep an eye on you. Have someone around to make sure you didn't hurt yourself. _That voice was so familiar. I was finally able to open my eyes and for half a second I could have sworn Hiei was leaning over me. I blinked a couple times to try and focus my eyes but Hiei was gone. Was he even here to begin with?

I was able to get up with very little stumbling but I did still feel light headed. The hairs on the back of my neck stood up as I felt myself being watched. I quickly turned to my right and got into a defensive stance. That's when I realized that it was only Kurama and Kuwabara. They where standing at the edge of the tree lining, which was now a mile back.

"Is... is it safe?" I heard Kuwabara said.

They started to walk towards me so I started to walk towards them as well, meet them half way and all that. When we got close enough I could see Kurama smile at me.

"I see you're now able to control your fire side."

I smiled back at Kurama. "I guess you could say I found my inner anger."

Suddenly Yusuke arrived and looked a little out of breath. Hiei appeared out of no where soon after. Kurama and Yusuke looked at each other for second before Yusuke nodded. "They've been warned. Thankfully her fire didn't get too far. No one was around the clearing during her explosion."

I frowned at Yusuke and was about to ask what he was talking about but I suddenly felt demon energy behind me. It was getting close, and fast. Without thinking, I turned and got into a defensive stance again. Only this time my hands where engulfed with flames and waves, just like in my dreams.

"No wait," Yusuke said, placing a hand on my shoulder. "I guess Kurama didn't tell you yet."

Ugh, what now? Just as I started to stand straight again, I saw some demons peak their heads into the clearing, but they stayed behind the trees. They looked a little worried, not threatening at all. What were they doing here? As I stared at them, I realized I could sense a lot of demon energy. Some of it was even miles back. Why couldn't I sense them before? What the hell is going on?!

"Here," Kurama said, holding out this mirror. Where did he get that from? "You're in your demon form. Take a look."

I looked over at Kurama before I slowly took the mirror. Please don't be ugly, please don't be ugly. I lifted the mirror in front of my face and was a little surprised with what I saw. My eyes were a different colour, one was a fiery red while the other was a deep ocean blue. My hair looked the same but it moved with the wind that I couldn't even feel. It looked like flames and waves at the same time. But that wasn't even the weirdest part. My skin looked... different. My complexion was so clear and... perfect that it looked so unnatural. It didn't look right at all.

As I felt myself go completely calm, I saw myself change back to normal. I'm going to have to learn out to control this. After I handed the mirror back to Kurama, I looked over at the demons again to see them backing away.

I nodded in their direction. "So, whats up with all the demons?"

I looked over at the guys and started to head back to the house. They walked with me but not before exchanging looks like they wanted to talk more about my demon side.

"A lot has changed since you've been gone," Yusuke said.

"I've noticed," I said, raising my eyebrow at him.

"Not just here on the compound. A lot has changed between the three worlds."

"Even Spirit World?" I asked with surprised.

He nodded as we continued to walk. "I guess you could say that a lot of people's true colours were revealed." I frowned at him. "Well, for starters, it turns out King Enma had been brainwashing demons from Demon World. He made them act out violently and look like the bad guys so Spirit World could appear like the 'good guys.' Koenma found out and overthrew him."

"Overthrew him?! No way."

"Yeah, who would have thought that little toddler was king material."

I laughed softly and shook my head at him. Somethings just never change, I see.

"Well, anyways," Yusuke continued. "Since everyone found out that the demons aren't as bad as we had originally thought, there's been a sense of peace between Human and Demon World." He gestured behind us, towards the clearing and the rest of Genkai's land. "Demon's have been living in Human World. Genkai had offered her land as a kind of safe haven.." I didn't know if I felt comfortable with that thought. "You have nothing to worry about. They're all harmless," he leaned into my ear to whisper, "kind of pathetic too." I bit back a laugh. "Those guys were probably checking out where your energy had come from. We all sensed it. It's intense."

I narrowed my eyes at him. "No it wasn't."

"Um, hello," Kuwabara said. "Did you not see the damage done to all those tress?! You can be really scary sometimes."

I would have made some kind of "pfft, yeah right" reply but I was too busy opening the door then getting a bad case of vertigo. I tried to brace myself against the door but it only swung open even more which caused me to fall to my knees.

"Whoa, Aly-Jay!" Kurama said, rushing forward. "Are you alright?"

"Nothing, I'm fine." I let Kurama help me back up. "I think I just need something to eat. Taking those bracelets off took a toll on me."

Kurama looked at his watch as he helped me onto the couch. "It is close to dinner time."

"Shit, is it really?" Yusuke said in a panic. "I need to get to work." Without another word, he ran off.

"I'll start dinner," Kurama said.

"Let me help," I said, starting to get up.

"No, you sit down," Kuwabara said as he pushed me back down. "I'll help Kurama."

I stared up at Kuwabara in shock. There is no way this is actually happening. Kuwabara helping with dinner. Is he actually growing up now? This is weird... As the guys went off to cook I looked around to see that Hiei was gone. Typical. While I just sat on the couch, I tried to focus on my breathing. I didn't want to get up and fall over again.

"Dinner's ready."

My head snapped up as I looked over at Kurama. Whoa, had I dozed off?

"Do you need to sleep? I can put away some of the food for you."

I shook my head and got up to head to the kitchen. When I entered the doorway I couldn't help but pause. Everyone, but Yusuke, was sitting at the table, even Hiei. As I let the image settle in my mind I finally went to take a seat next to Kuwabara. During dinner I asked Kuwabara what he's been up to while I've been gone. I'm was a little surprised by how hard he seems to be working in order to get into University. He didn't seem to know what he wanted to do in terms of a career but at least he planned on going to university.

Kurama was the one that surprised me the most. I expected him to go to university and be very successful but he decided to work at his stepfathers company. His logic did make sense though. Since his family isn't his _real_ family he doesn't plan on staying in Human World forever. Why bother going to school when you just plan on leaving once your family doesn't "need" you anymore?

By the time I had finished getting my update on Kurama I was done eating. Which was perfect since I had no intention on asking Hiei anything. After I washed my plate I headed upstairs to finish my unpacking. It didn't take very long since I've done most of it already and I only had two bags of luggage.

I was exhausted by the time I had climbed into bed but when I was in lying in bed I realized that I couldn't sleep. Every time I closed my eyes all I could see was the demon that kidnapped me. All he did was stay outside my window and just stare inside my room. I shut my eyes tighter, hoping it would get rid of the image. It made things worse. Not only could I see the demon staring at me, I could now feel his hands around my ankles as he dragged me away. I could hear the crash of my lamb and of my window breaking. I couldn't do anything. I could only let him drag me away.

I quickly sat up to the sound of someone screaming. There was the sound of someone scrambling and a thump, which I could only assume of someone falling. It was when my door swung open that I realized it was me screaming. I turned towards the door to see that Hiei was the first one to arrive. With my hands now covering my mouth, I couldn't tell Hiei to get out. A few seconds later the others arrived, even Yusuke.

They were all braced for an attack as they looked around. While there was nothing there, Hiei decided to go out the window and probably check things out. Yusuke lowered his arms but still seemed to stay alert. Kurama relaxed and came to me.

"Are you alright? What's wrong?" he asked.

"Nothing," I said as I looked over at my window, which was now open. "It must have been a nightmare."

"Are you sure?" he asked as he took a seat on my bed. "Do you need anything?"

I shook my head and curled my knees up to my chest. "I'm fine. It was just a nightmare."

They guys waited until Hiei came back. When he confirmed that there was nothing out there, they left. Hiei was the last to leave and he hesitated at the door. I quickly looked away and at my wall. _Weak._ When I heard the door close I finally lied back down. But I could still hearing the crashing...

That's it. If I hope to get any sleep tonight I'm going to have to leave. I threw the covers off and grabbed my cardigan. As I pulled it on I headed down the hall way. I paused outside Hiei's door but I quickly shook my head and continued down the hall. I stopped outside Kurama's door. While I turned to face the door I couldn't bring myself to knock. Weak, I'm weak. I looked back towards my room but I couldn't bring myself to go back there either. Baby steps, I'll take baby steps. I took a deep breath before finally knocking gently on Kurama's door.

He answered a few seconds later. The sight of him in only his pyjamas made me feel guilty of keeping him up. I couldn't help but look down and fight back a sigh.

"Aly-Jay!" He sounded so concerned that it only made me feel worse. He stepped outside and closed his door. "Is everything alright?"

I couldn't do this. "Yes," I muttered, turning towards my room. "I'll be fine. Sorry for bugging you."

Kurama grabbed my arm gently. "You can't sleep?" I looked over at him and shook my head. "Well..." he paused to look at his door. "I don't know if..."

I felt my whole face go warm. "No I wasn't expecting... It's just... I can't stop thinking about what happened in there. I just... I don't think I can sleep in there."

Kurama thought about something for a second. "I think I have an idea. Is that sweater warm enough to go outside?" I nodded. "Alright. I'm sure the house Genkai was living in has another room in there where you can sleep." Without another word, Kurama lead the way towards Genkai's house.

Since Yukina was sleeping in this house, both of us were quiet as we navigated through the place. It was much bigger than I expected. I didn't have time to really look around but it appeared like the living area was on the main floor while there were three bedrooms and two bathrooms upstairs.

"There we go," Kurama said quietly as he opened one of the door.

I peaked into the room and realized that it was bigger than my other room. It had all the same things—single bed, a desk, and a dressed—but it had much more space. I stepped inside and took off my cardigan to hang on the desk chair. This is going to feel weird, but at least I'll get some sleep.

I turned back to Kurama. "Thank you. And I'm sorry for keeping you up. I just can't..."

Kurama raised a hand to stop me. "It's fine. I completely understand. This is a good change, I think. You're being upgraded." He smiled at me. "Have a good night."

I thanked him before closing the door. That night I might have gotten the best sleep I've ever had in the past two years. When I woke up the next morning I felt completely refreshed. I might have had my eyes open for at least two seconds before there was a knock on my door. I got up to open the door and noticed it was Yukina.

"Good morning," she said with a soft smile. "I hope I didn't wake you."

I shook my head as I crossed my arms in front of my chest. "Good morning, Yukina. Can I help you with anything?"

She shook her head. "No, I just heard that you'll be staying here from now on. It will be nice to have a roommate. It's been kind of lonely without Genkai around."

I couldn't help but smile at her. "Well I think it would be nice to have a female roommate for once." She laughed softly at that. "Lets make some breakfast." I went to go get my sweater before the two of us went to go make pancakes.

It was really fun. It was her first time making pancakes so I tried to make it as fun as possible. The whole process was filled with laughter and a few flour spills. By the time we had our fill and had cleaned everything up, I decided I should probably move my things over.

I was half way through filling my luggage when I felt someone standing at the door. It didn't feel threatening so I didn't think I needed to brace myself when I turned to look. I almost wished I had, however, when I saw that it was Hiei. My body went a little tense as I crossed my arms and said, "What do you want, Hiei?"

He looked down at my luggage then back at me. "Running away again? Even after we had to come and get you?"

I glared at him. "I'm not running away. And you didn't have to come and get me. Kurama could have gone alone."

Hiei's eyes narrowed at me when I mentioned Kurama's name. "It sure does look like you're running."

"For your information," I started, my tone obviously stern. "I can't stand to stay in this house. I'm moving in with Yukina now. Not that it's any of your business." Without another word, I turned back to my bags and continued to put my things in them.

Hiei continued to just stand there, watching, but neither of us said anything. When I had my bags full I walked out, making Hiei step aside to let me past. This guy was seriously starting to irritate me. I can't understand him at all. Why would be bother to see that I was moving if he didn't try to make me stay? I quickly pushed those thoughts aside as I made my way back to the main house.

A couple hours later I was done with the packing and it was time for lunch. Since I had taught Yukina how to make pancakes at breakfast, she taught me how to cook in general. We started with the basics. While it felt easy with Yukina around I knew it would take a while before I could manage this kind of thing on my own.

It was also nice to have this bond being formed while we cook and eat together. After spending the past two years without any kind of friendship this felt so nice. It wasn't just the friendship though, I felt like it's been forever since I last really bonded with an actual girl. I could finally talk about all the girly things I've wanted to talk about. Like painting her nails! Oh gosh, so much pent up girl energy.

After we finished cleaning up I went off to look for Kurama. He wasn't hard to find since we bumped into each other while I headed off to their house. I was about to ask him if he actually does work like he said he did. Then I realized that it's Sunday... smart AJ, smart.

"Hey," I said, "do we have plans on training today?"

Kurama shook his head slightly. "Nah, not today. We all figured that you could use the time to get settled. Plus it might be a good thing for you to uh," he looked me up and down quickly, "gain a little weight."

I pressed my lips together and playfully narrowed my eyes at him. "I feel like I should be getting mad at that comment but I just can't bring myself to say eating is a bad thing." We both laughed softly before I continued. "But are you sure that's a good idea? It seems like a lot of you guys have... you know... lives now. Wont training get in the way?"

Kurama waved me off. "Don't worry about it. Yusuke just works evenings so he'll have time. Kuwabara will be on summer holidays soon, not that he'll help much anyways," I laughed at that. "And I've taken a few weeks off from work."

"You didn't have to do that," I said, feeling kind of guilty.

"No, it's fine. I told my stepfather that if he really does need me then I'll go to help. It's no big deal, really."

I could only shrug at that. "So... no training today?" Kurama shook his head. "Would it be okay if I go to town? I feel like I could use some personal time."

"Go ahead. Will you be back for dinner?"

I confirmed that I would be before I grabbed my bag and headed off to the train. Since I wasn't in any kind of rush I made sure to take my time. It was actually quite nice heading into town. I didn't have a lot of time or energy to do it two years ago so this felt like a whole new experience. When I finally got off the train I headed off to the shopping part of town. I had no intention of buying anything but window shopping sounded good.

At first I wasn't paying much attention to the shops I was passing until I noticed a dance shop. The pointe shoes in the window caught my eye so I stopped to take a closer look. The sight of them improved my mood until I saw the price. It said 8,293 yen so I quickly did the math to find out it was eighty-five Canadian dollars. Typical. My mood decreased yet again.

Not wanting to spend another second staring at something I couldn't have, I quickly turned to keep walking. Unfortunately, my turn was so sudden that I ended up bumping into someone. The collision caused my bag to fall off my shoulder. All my things went everywhere. Awesome...

"I'm sorry," we both said as we bent down to gather my things.

"It's my fault," I said without looking at the other person. "I should be watching where I was going."

"It's fine," said the other person. It was a males voice so I couldn't help but look to see who was helping me.

He was a young guy, probably around my own age of 20. His hair was black and reached the top of his shoulders. It looked like it hasn't been brushed in days but I couldn't help but feel like it worked for him. His eyes were a dark brown but they appeared much lighter in the sunlight. He even looked like he missed a couple meals but it added to his appeal.

When we finally had everything back in my bag both of us got back up and stood there awkwardly. I got a better look at his clothes and noticed that they were mostly a dark colour. He almost looked like a hipster but I tried not to judge because it didn't look like he was trying to dress like one. It was like he just found those clothes comfortable and that was that. He looked me up and down and raised an eyebrow but didn't say anything about my height. I thanked him for that. Well, mentally at least.

"Thanks," I said to break the silence. "Again, I'm sorry, I really need to start watching where I'm going."

He laughed gently. "Seriously, it's fine. No broken bones or anything so we're good."

"Phew," I said as I playfully wiped my forehead.

"I'm Shuya, by the way," he said as he held his hand out.

I took his hand but frowned at him a little. "Shuya? I've never heard of a name like that before."

"Well, technically it's Joshua but everyone calls me Shuya."

I was a little surprised by that, he definitely looked Japanese. "Oh, were you born in Japan?"

He shook his head. "No, I was actually born in America but I've spent most of my life in Japan. Although, I do go back every now and then."

"Same," I said with a little too much energy. "Kind of... a little, not really. I was born and raised in Canada."

"Nice," he said with a smile. There was a moment of silence. "You still haven't told me your name."

"Right, sorry," I said as I felt my cheeks go hot. "I'm Aly-Jay, but you can call me AJ if you like."

"Well it's nice to meet you, AJ." Joshua looked over at the window of the shop I was looking into. He nodded towards it. "Are you a dancer?"

I shrugged. "Not really. I used to dance but my ballet shoes broke the other day. I was just taking a look at prices but it's over my budget."

Someone brushed past us. Both of us looked around and realized that we were taking up most of the sidewalk.

"Walk and talk?" he offered, motioning in the direction I was heading in.

I felt myself blush again. Was this actually happening? Could I make a friend this quickly? I shook my head and adjusted the bag on my shoulder. "No, I don't want to take you away with whatever you were doing."

"I wouldn't have offered if I had other plans."

"I guess..." I almost felt like I was doing something wrong as we began to walk. How could I be doing something wrong, though? It's not like I'm in a relationship. Still, something felt a little weird about this so I made sure there was a decent about of space between us.

"So a ballerina, huh?" He said as he put his hands in his pocket. "Are you studying at the local ballet school?"

I shook my head. "Nah, my experience doesn't really go much farther than high school. I'm actually staying over at this temple not too far from here." Should I have actually said that?

"Genkai's temple?" he asked with interest.

He surprised me yet again. "You know it?"

"Sure I do. I've actually been thinking about checking it out. I heard she passed away."

"She did," I said sadly.

We walked in silence for a bit before Joshua tried to lighten the mood. "So what are you doing over there? Studying to be a ninja or something?"

I couldn't help but smirk at that. I shrugged before I said, "Or something."

We continued to walk and talk a little more. It turns out he was my age and that he was from California. Once I told him that I've always wanted to go there he started to tell me all the places I should go to. By the time I checked my watch I realized I had an hour and a half until dinner.

"Oh crap," I said, stopping. "I should get going."

"Okay," he said simply. "It was nice meeting you."

"Likewise," I said with a little smile. It felt rude to not make an effort to see him again. "You're welcome to come to Genkai's temple whenever you can."

He smiled back at me. "I'd love to."

"Well, I'll see you later," I said with a little wave. Without another word I headed off to the train station.

I had made it back just in time for dinner, but it was just Kurama and I. Yusuke was working, Kuwabara was back in town so he could go to school, and Hiei was just no where to be found. I had asked where Yukina was and if she would join us but Kurama mentioned that she's been spending a lot of time with Kuwabara's family. I bet he was happy about that.

While we ate, I couldn't help but mention how sweet Kurama was to make dinner for the two of us. That and the fact that he seemed so much like a brother to me. I've never had a brother and he's never had a sister so both of us found it kind of amusing.

Our conversation died down a bit and that's when Kurama let me know that I'll be starting my training tomorrow. He felt like I could use some more weight gain so I'll just be doing some basic stuff. They wanted to see what I remembered from two years ago.

After I agreed, I helped Kurama clean up then headed to bed. My night started off calm and peaceful but as I finally got into a deep sleep I started to dream. It started off as it usually did.

* * *

Joshua watched Aly-Jay walk away and couldn't help but feel like he got the jackpot. But it wasn't just her appearance. Sure she was hot with a nice personality, but it was much more. He could sense her demon energy from a mile away. Curious as to why a demon would be in town, he went to go check it out. It was quite a surprise to realize she looked so human. When he bumped into her he realized that she was part human. No wonder she looked so... normal.

As Joshua started to walk again he could feel himself being watched. At first he chose to ignore it but it was getting irritating. He could sense that whoever was watching him was a demon as well and it didn't sit well with him. It was one thing for him to seek out a demon, but to be followed by one himself? No thanks.

Shuya stopped walking and looked up to in the direction where he could sense the demon. They made eye contact instantly. Shuya couldn't help but raise an eyebrow at the short demon standing on top of one of the buildings. He had black hair that stood up with one white streak. The black robes he wore made him look a little mysterious but Shuya didn't care much for it. Shuya was curious as to why this demon was watching him but he refused to show that. He simply nodded at the demon before walking away.


	3. Chapter 3

Hiei was sitting in his bed thinking about how frustrating it was for Aly-Jay to move out of this place. He didn't like it one bit. How else would he be able to keep an eye on her? If she got kidnapped once, it could happen again. He could only trust himself with her safety. He had thought he could trust Kuwabara but obviously that didn't work.

As Hiei continued to sit there, staring out the window, he began to feel like something was wrong. The longer he waited, the worse he began to feel. Depending on his instincts, he got up and quietly made his way to Aly-Jay. He assumed she was in the guest bedroom in Genkai's place and he was right.

Since Yukina wasn't here and the guys were at the other house, Hiei allowed himself to enter her room from the door. At first he just stood in the doorway, watching her sleep. Then he realized she had a frown on her face. That's when he remembered how cold she's been acting around him. She used to be so open and kind. She didn't care that Hiei barely ever talked to her, she would just come up to him as if he was just like the rest of the guys.  
Just when Hiei felt like he was being a creeper by watching her sleep he noticed her frown deepen before she moaned a little. Hiei frowned as well as he walked up to her. When he got a better look at her he saw that she was gently shaking her head. She was having a nightmare. Hiei's curiosity began to rise. He looked out the door as if to make sure no one was standing there before taking a seat on an empty part of her bed.

He knew she hated it when he did this but he had to know. Maybe her nightmares were the reason why she's been so cold lately. Hiei watched her and leaned forward a bit. It only took a second for him to see what she was dreaming about.

Hiei didn't know what he was expecting but it wasn't this. He stood off to the side and watched as Aly-Jay started to lose control of her powers. The fear in her eyes were almost as powerful as her demon energy. Hiei could only stand there as her powers exploded and ended up killing everyone. He was stunned by the power and when she began to search for the guys. There were tears in her eyes as she found each and every one of them. But she was too late. Then she found him. Hiei couldn't describe the feeling he felt when she gently pulled him onto her lap and rocked back and forth as her tears finally fell.

So this is why she's been acting differently. She's been reliving this dream over and over again. Hiei, of all people, could related. Just when he was about to leave her dreams, it suddenly changed. It had started off the same but ended up completely different. Curious as to how this one went, he watched as she and the Hiei in her dream began to talk.

"Please, Hiei," she whimpered. "Help me."

"Help you? Why should I help someone as weak as you?"

"But I don't have control over myself..." The pain in her voice tore Hiei apart.

"You don't have control because you were too weak to fight him. If you had only been stronger you wouldn't be in this mess."

"I'm sorry," her voice had gone quiet, soft. "What do you want me to do?"

"I want you to realize just how weak you really are."

Not even a second later he began to kill her, again. So this was it. This is why she's been acting do... odd. Hiei had no idea that this is what she's been dealing with for the past two years. These dreams... the death... The two of them.

He suddenly felt really warm. Frowning, he looked down at himself to realize that he was on fire. What the hell? He exited her dreams only to realize that her room was on fire. Confused, he looked down at Aly-Jay to realize that she was causing it. Her dreams had caused her fire to react. Without wasting another second he tried to wake her up and take out the fire. He struggled with the two. Her fire wasn't like anything he's dealt with before. He couldn't take them out.

* * *

My dreams were always the same. Always. I've just become aware of my surrounding and noticed that the guys were all around me. But it was always changing, never ending. I'm always dying or I'm killing the guys. However, there's always one thing that's the same. I never have control. My fire is always burning everything to the ground.

"Aly-Jay! AJ, wake up!"

I was suddenly shaking. My whole body was out of control. Half a second later my eyes shot open to see Hiei standing over me covered in flames but he didn't seem to have noticed. I quickly sat up to get a better look at him but then I realized the flames were coming from me. Now that I was awake, Hiei turned and tried to take out the flames but he didn't seem to have any luck. I got up and tried to avoid contact from the fire. That didn't seem to matter, though, since I didn't do a good enough job. But I didn't feel a thing whenever the flames danced across my skin.

"Are you just going to stand there?" Hiei yelled at me.

Right. I positioned my hands at my sides and slowly started to rise them up to my shoulders. As I did so water appeared and started to finally get rid of the flames. Hiei was finally able to make some progress with the flames as well. I wasn't sure how he did it but it looked like he was trying to contain it until the space was too small for it to "live". It wasn't long before Kurama and Yusuke had made it up to my room.

"Jeez," Yusuke said as he looked at the damage. "Way to go, Aly-Jay."

I had to look away as the guilt set in.

"I'm sorry," Kurama said. "We would have made it sooner but we couldn't get passed the flames." Kurama looked over at Hiei but Hiei quickly looked at the nearest wall. "Thankfully Hiei was around to try and wake you up before it got out of hand." Hiei looked over at Kurama but now Kurama avoided Hiei's eyes. Weird...

I looked around the room that was now completely black. This wasn't out of hand?

"I'm sorry," I muttered. "I don't know what happened. I was dreaming when..." I couldn't help but look over at Hiei but he quickly looked away when we made eye contact. I didn't know what else to say so I just muttered an apology again.

"It's fine," Kurama said as he stepped forward. "Don't worry, thankfully Yukina is spending the night with the Kuwabara's."

I took a deep breath at that. "Thank god for that. What time is it, anyways?"

"Around two in the morning," Kurama said after he checked his watch.

"Well it looks like I wont be going anymore sleep tonight," I said as I looked around again.

"You could always sleep in your original room," Kurama suggested.

I thought about it for a second. If a nightmare caused all this, would going back to that room be even worse? Unfortunately, I was so tired that I couldn't bring myself to _not_ sleep tonight. After I nodded in agreement we headed off to their place. When we got outside I looked back at the house to see how much damage there was.

"Genkai would have killed me," I said after I saw the damage.

Yusuke waved it off like it was nothing. "You don't honestly think this was the first time there's been some damage to her compound, do you? Some of her buildings have been so damaged that they weren't standing anymore. Besides, I'm sure we'll get it all fixed up in no time." He flexed his muscles playfully. "With all our demon energy we'll get it done within a few days."

Thankfully I was able to sleep peacefully that night, even though I didn't feel completely comfortable. I did feel like I was being watched over though. Maybe sleeping away from the guys was a bad idea.

The next morning was filled with food. It was nice but I felt like the guys could have been a little less obvious with the whole fattening-me-up thing. After I had eaten as much as I could, I went back up to my room to double check some of the clothes I had left behind. I felt extremely lucky that I didn't feel the need to bring everything of mine over to the other house. Especially since I left a sports bra and some workout clothes. Unfortunately, a lot of my sentimental items were lost, like my books.

After I changed, I went downstairs to see Kurama and Yusuke waiting. Both of them were going to see how much I remembered and what else I needed to improve on. At first I was worried that they were going to go straight into the work out after I just stuffed my face with food. Thank god they filled an hour with just stretching.

The hours that followed were filled with hand-to-hand combat. While I was rusty to begin with, I did catch on quick. We also found out that nothing has changed when it came to my defensive style. I struggled until Yusuke put on music but then I was able to get back into a pattern.

It went on like this until lunch time. But by the time we were all hungry none of us had the energy to make something to eat, and I couldn't get away with just eating a banana or something. It only took a second for Yusuke to suggest we go into town for some pizza. I haven't had pizza in years so that sounded like the greatest idea ever.

By the time we were in town and getting our meal, I was too hungry to have any lady-like manners. When I finished my second piece I was able to thinking about things that didn't involve my hunger.

"You know," I said as I leaned back in my seat, "now that I think about it, it seems kind of useless to go all the way into town for a couple slices of pizza."

Yusuke shrugged at that. "What's wrong with treating ourselves every now and then?"

"I guess," I said before taking a sip of my drink.

"There is something else I thought we could do while we're in town," said Kurama and he cleaned himself up with a napkin.

"Oh?" I leaned forward, interested. "And what's that?"

Kurama's cellphone began to ring. "Ah, perfect timing." I frowned in confusion as he answered. My frown deepened when he handed the phone to me. "It's for you."

I slowly put the phone to my ear and said, "Hello?"

"Aly-Jay?" It was my mother. I closed my eyes as I felt completely guilty for not calling her soon. "Now before you apologize, I want you to know that your father called me when you were on your way to the airport. Plus, Kurama noticed that you were really busy settling in so he let me know that you arrived safely." I looked over at Kurama and he quickly avoided my gaze. I was completely speechless. "He also let me know what happened last night. That's why I've transferred some money to your account. You should have enough to get you want you need with a little extra."

"Thank you," I muttered as I felt like I was on a roller coaster of emotion. "I'm sorry for not calling you."

"It's fine," my mother said. "You don't need to apologize."

I suddenly remembered something and then I felt guilty, once again, for not thinking of it sooner. "Hows-"

"Mizu? He's fine. Still safe and sound. Although I can tell he misses you. He spends most of his time in your room."

That only made me feel worse. "I'll come get him-" Oh god, when could I go get him? "I'll get him when I can..."

"There's no rush. He may not love me like he loved you but at least we're getting along. Now you go get what you need before the stores close. I love you and don't worry about me."

I closed my eyes before I said, "I love you to, Mom."

"Good, now you stay safe. I'll see you when I see you."

I laughed softly at that before we said goodbye and hung up.

Kurama took his phone back and put it away. "And now you know what else we can do while we're in town."

"Yeah but... are you sure you guys are okay with following me around town to go shopping?"

"Please," Yusuke said, brushing me off. "Keiko has been training me for a day like this."

I laughed at that a little. "Well, I guess it's a good thing I'm not much of a shopper."

As I tried to finish off my drink, I looked out the window and people watched. I was almost done when I saw someone walking by that looked so familiar. I sat up and tried to get a better look. It wasn't until he saw me and stopped to wave that I realized it was Shuya. I was surprised to see him so all I did was wave slowly.

The guys noticed my wave and turned to see who I was waving at. We remained silent as Shuya made his way into the pizza place. I couldn't help but think how weird it was running into him again. He obviously didn't have any other plans otherwise he wouldn't have came in. I didn't have time to think any more of it as he walked up to our table.

"Hello, AJ," he said with a little curve at the edge of his lips.

"Hi," I said kind of awkwardly. It felt really weird having him around Kurama and Yusuke. But they have lived normal human lives. Maybe I'm just paranoid that everyone will assume that we're demons. I need to stop over thinking...

"So, who are your friends?"

I felt my cheeks go hot. "Right, sorry. Shuya, this is Kurama and Yusuke. Guys, this is Shuya, I met him the other day when I went to town."

Yusuke shook his hand and was generally rather kind to him but it seemed like Kurama was being a little too formal with him. Did he not trust Shuya?

"Are you guys just finishing up?"

I nodded and took the last sip of my drink. "We're actually going shopping now."

"New ballet shoes?" Shuya asked a little playfully. He stepped aside so we could get out of our booth.

"I wish," I said with a little laugh. "Nah, I have to get some new clothes. I kind of had... a little accident."

"Is everything okay?"

"Yeah, of course." As we headed to the door I couldn't help but feel like he wanted to come with us. "So, did you want to join? It might be a little boring, watching me get clothes."

"Sounds like fun to me."

I looked up at Shuya. Was there a double meaning there? I put a little distance between Shuya and I as I opened the door. When I stepped outside I practically ran over Hiei. God, he's got to stop doing that.

As I recovered from almost running over Hiei, Shuya introduced himself. And typical Hiei, he just looked up at him before walking over to my other side. I frowned slightly at him before turned to the rest of the guys. "So, where's the nearest clothing store?"

Kurama and Yusuke lead the way. We talked as we began to make our way to the clothing shops. Shuya was telling the guys how he was born and raised in America while the rest of us asked questions. However, it wasn't hard to miss the tension growing between Shuya and Hiei. I had no idea where it was coming from so I could only assume I was imagining it.

The whole shopping process wasn't long at all. Once I figured out a size, which happened after I picked out a pair of pants then have Kurama hand me the same pants but in one size bigger, the whole shopping thing lasted maybe half an hour. Tops.

"Whoa," Yusuke said as we walked out of the store. "You weren't lying when you said you were a quick shopper."

I shrugged with a little smile as I adjusted the bags in my hands. "What can I say? I have little tricks up my sleeves."

"Here, let me help you," Shuya said when he saw my adjusting the bags.

I was surprised that he, and Hiei, had stuck around. Shuya was able to get along with... well Yusuke, so he didn't really have a reason to leave. That and he seemed rather interested in me somehow. He would always be trying to find ways to keep up conversation between the two of us.

"No, it's fine," I said as I rearranged the bags. "They're not heavy or anything. But they do weigh down on my fingers a little." I could tell that Shuya was going to offer to hold them again so I added, "Besides, I'm stronger than I look." I smiled softly at him.

"Do you have everything you need?" Yusuke asked.

"I think so. If I forgot anything then I can just come back and get it."

"What about those dance shoes from the other day?" Shuya asked. "Do you have enough for those?"

I laughed a little at that. "I can't believe you remembered that."

"How could I not?" Shuya asked with a small smile. "It's how we first met."

I opened my mouth to reply but I suddenly felt some kind of hostile energy coming from beside me. I turned to look and noticed it was coming from Hiei. He was facing away from me but I could see how tense he was. Plus, I could have sworn I could see the energy radiating off of him. Why was he acting this way?

"Is everything alright?" Shuya asked.

I quickly turned back to him and forced a little smile. "Yeah, sorry. I just realized that we should probably start heading back."

"That's a good idea," Kurama said.

Without wasting another second, we said our goodbyes and left Shuya to head back to the compound. The trip was mostly quiet with the exception of Yusuke asking how I met Shuya. I kept my answers short and truthful since I'm sure Yusuke wasn't the gossiping type. We headed straight to our house so I could put my stuff away but as we passed Genkai's home I couldn't ignore the huge burnt hole in the side.

"Are we going to get that fixed?" I asked as we continued to walk.

"Sure," Kurama said. "Why don't we start after you put your stuff away?"

I paused in my walking for a second. "Wait, what? I don't know anything about construction."

Kurama and Yusuke looked kind of amused at my reaction.

"It's okay," Yusuke said as he placed a hand on my shoulder. I couldn't help but feel like it was kind of 'sup, bro' like. "We'll find something for you to do."

I narrowed my eyes at him but continued on my way. I didn't bother putting my stuff away; I just placed the bags on my bed. After I changed into something that I didn't mind getting dirty I went downstairs to see the guys waiting. We didn't waste any time and went straight to Genkai's place… kind of. Kurama first lead us to a huge, and I mean HUGE, pile of lumber that wasn't too far from Genkai's place.

"Whaaaat?" was the only thing I found myself saying.

Yusuke just laughed and went to grab seven pieces of wood as if it were nothing. I would have been shocked if I didn't know about his whole demon thing.

"You'd be surprised by how many times Genkai's compound has been attacked and damaged," Kurama explained as he stepped forward. I raised an eyebrow at him but he just smiled at me. "You can start off by bringing some wood to the house. Try taking as much as you can."

I raised my eyebrow again. Is he treating this as some kind of strength training? After Kurama took as many as he could and left, I went over to the pile then hesitated. I know I'm unnaturally strong and everything but I've never actually tested it by doing heavy lifting. Would I be able to lift as much as Yusuke and Kurama?

At first I only lifted one piece to test the weight. When it felt like nothing at all I added another two. I could add more but now I needed to think about my balance as well. Since I had to work on both the balance and the weight, I had to stop at five. I slowly turned so I could head to the house and nearly dropped everything. Hiei was standing right there watching me. Has he been there the whole time?

We just stood there, staring at each other. After I realized Hiei wasn't going to anything I fought the urge to roll my eyes. I waited one more second before walking away without giving him a second glance.

By the time I finally made it back to the others, Kurama and Yusuke were already up in the room I had slept in. It looked like they were getting rid of the out wall and added support. Although I really couldn't say for sure since I know absolutely nothing about this kind of stuff. I did know that there was a huge hole in the house though… When I got closer to the hole Kurama caught sight of me and gave me a little nod. What that approval? I'll take it.

"Just put those with the rest," he called out to me. "Then jump up here to get stuff organized."

I placed the pieces of wood with the rest then moved to stand at the bottom of the hole. When I thought I was in a good position to jump I looked up at my target; which was much taller than me… Oh god, okay I can do this. Wait, maybe I should get a running start. I took a few steps back and tried to ignore the fact that the guys were watching me. After I look a deep breath, I ran. I kept my eyes on my target but right when I braced myself to jump, I looked down to make sure I didn't jump on anything.

I might have been in the air for half a second but my landing wasn't the greatest. My balance decided to take a nap apparently because I stumbled and fell forward onto my hand and knees. Hoping to make it not so obvious I quickly stood. Unfortunately, my hands and knees were completely black. Good thing I changed.

As I tried to wipe my hands "clean" I noticed Kurama watching me with an amused expression on his face. Crap, he saw. "I made it," I said with a little smile.

He laughed softly before gesturing to one of the still existing sides. "See if there's anything worth keeping and throw the rest away."

I got straight to work. It was slow, mindless stuff. Things were getting thrown out more than being kept. When I bent down to grab what might have been a shirt, something caught my eye. There was something under the bed. I hadn't touched the bed yet since there was hardly any damage. Since my clothes were completely dirty—thanks to Yusuke ripping through everything sending dust everywhere—I got down on my stomach and reached to grab a ball type, thing. The moment I touched it I noticed it was made of glass.

Shit, I thought when I realized it was my spirit of words. I had completely forgotten about it. As I stared at it I thought about throwing it with the trash. I wanted to because of the simple fact it was from Mukuro. But my curiosity was getting the better of me and I found myself putting it in my pocket.

"Can I help you?" I heard Kurama say. I could barely see him through the hole that was getting much smaller. Pfft, who needs contractors when you have demons who work ten times faster?

"I sure as hell hope so." My whole body went tense. I know that voice. "We're looking for a certain granddaughter that seems to have forgotten that she has grandparents."

Shit, I thought yet again. I am going to get chewed out. I knew hiding wasn't the answer so I slowly made my way over to the hole. My body got even tenser as I got closer to the hole. Taking a deep breath, I poked my head out. Sure enough, there they were, standing a few feet away from Kurama. My grandmother stood there with her hands on her hips, she did not like to be kept waiting. My grandpa stood to her right looking all cheerful and laid back. Their postures alone screamed grandma and grandpa to me.

"Well, look who it is," my grandmother said as I jumped down. "I hardly recognized you. How long as it been?"

I could only give a sheepish smile as I tried to maintain eye contact. My grandmother was not someone you disrespected. "It's been too long."

"You can say that again. And who's fault is that?"

"Mine," I said quietly. I risked taking a look at my grandpa and regretted that decision instantly. He was giving me a knowing smirk that made me press my lips together so I didn't laugh.

"Good," my grandmother said with a nod. "Now that we've cleared that up, give me a hug."

And just like that she went from scary grandmother to the greatest friend a granddaughter could ask for. We smiled at each other before I stepped forward to give her the hug. When she finally let go I took a step back and looked back at the guys. Yusuke had dropped down and stood next to Kurama. Hiei was nowhere to be found but I'm sure he'll show up eventually.

"Guys, this is my grandmother and grandfather," I said motioned to the correct person. "Grandparents, this is Yusuke and Kurama."

Kurama stepped forward to shake their hands. "It's an honour to meet you. Aly-Jay has been a wonder to work with."

My grandmother raised an eyebrow at me which I replied with an eye roll. "Well," my grandmother said as she took Kurama's hand, "I hope she's been showing more respect to you then with us."

"Grandmother!" She isn't going to let me forget. "I've been training so much that I haven't even had time to talk to mom."

"You haven't even talked to your mother?!"

I threw my arms in the air and opened my mouth to explain when my grandmother gently placed her hand on my cheek. I knew she was only teasing but that touch alone calmed me down. Whether it was our shared link to the element of water or not, her touch always calmed me down. It's always been like that between us. I'll never forget the time when I was little over six and I had just dropped my favourite teddy bear in the dirt of my grandmother's garden. I had instantly crying but my grandmother simply walked up to me and gently cupped my little cheeks in the palm of her hands. My eyes were dry in seconds. I'll always remember the smile she gave me before picking up my bear, dusting it off, and then handing it to me. I looked over at my grandmother and I could tell she was thinking of the same memory.

"Let me guess," Yusuke said as he stepped forward. He motioned towards my grandmother, "You're the fire demon," then towards my grandfather, "and you're the water demon."

My grandparents looked at each other in a way I could only dream of happening if I was with someone for as long as they've been together. They held hands before shaking their heads.

"The opposite actually," my grandfather said.

"Really?" Yusuke seemed really surprised. "To be completely honest, I don't think I've ever met a fire demon that doesn't have some kind of temper."

Both my grandparents seemed amused by that. "I guess you could say I've learned to control my anger," my grandfather said with a smile.

"Well, I know another fire demon that could-" Yusuke paused for half a second when he noticed something behind us. "Oh, hi, Hiei."

I turned to look. Sure enough, there he was, standing there looking as stern as ever. He eyed my grandparents as he came forward which caused me to narrow my eyes at him. Hiei looked like he was analysing them which I couldn't completely blame him for. While I could guarantee they were actually my grandparents, it was harder convincing others of that fact. The only things giving away their age were the wrinkles around their eyes and mouth. Even then, they look more like laugh lines. Oh the wonders of being a demon.

"So, you're Hiei." My grandfather's words brought me out of my daydream. "I've heard so much about you." He stepped towards Hiei as if to give him a hand shake.

Hiei narrowed his eyes at my grandfather, again, before looking at me. It felt like he was trying to read my mind which caused me to narrow my eyes at him. I thought about giving him the finger again but then I thought of something better. While I maintained eye contact with him I sent him a message. _You disrespect my grandparents in any way, shape, or form and I will cut you in your sleep._ I could tell Hiei got the message by the fact that he narrowed his eyes at me even more. I didn't realize someone's eyes could do that…

With my message received, I made sure to put a cheerful smile on my face before linking arms with my grandmother. I made sure she didn't make any contact with my dirty clothes. "Would you like some tea?" I asked as I smiled up at her.

"Oh, so know you decide to have manners," was her reply as we started to walk away.

I opened my mouth to start defending myself but my grandmother gently poked my side to let me know she was joking. Pressing my lips together firmly, I playfully glared at her. She just shrugged me off. Typical.

"So tell me about this Hiei."

My whole body went tense. "Excuse me?"

"Hi-ei. Tell me about him."

"There isn't much to say." My god, she doesn't beat around the bush.

"Please, I know sexual tension when I see it."

"Grandmother!"

"What? I may be old in years but I'm not that old. That's the fun thing about being a demon."

I opened the door to the room where we usually have tea with guests. She went to go sit down while I went to go make tea. As I waited I couldn't help but wonder what it's like to have normal, human, grandparents…

"So?" my grandmother said, the lack of patience was bleeding out of her voice.

"So?" I said back, dragging out the word.

"Are you going to tell me or not?"

I did my best to keep my voice calm as I put down the tea. "There is nothing to tell." Sure there was tension between Hiei and I. But sexual tension? I don't think so.

I would have continued but my grandfather had walked in. "That Hiei kid really needs to lighten up."

My grandmother shot me a look which only made me roll my eyes in frustration. I'm beginning to sense a habit… As my grandfather settled down beside my grandmother, I went to make sure he has a cup.

The rest of their visit consisted of us talking and catching up while we drank tea. We talked about the guys. I could tell they weren't completely comfortable with the idea of me staying with a bunch of males. But after I made sure they knew everything was fine—and after they had actually met them—they seemed okay with it.

It wasn't until the sun was starting to set when they brought up leaving. I had offered for them to stay the night but they insisted they had invaded my space long enough. We could've argued for a bit longer but I knew better.

After I watched them leave I turned back to head to the house. I paused when I saw all the guys standing there, waiting. Awe crap. What now?


	4. Chapter 4

Something was up, I just know it, I thought as I walked up to the guys. Given the way the stood side-by-side, I knew there was no way I could avoid this either. Might as well bite the bullet and figure out what was wrong.

I stared at each and every one of their serious faces. "What's up?" I asked while trying to sound calm.

Kurama was the one that spoke. "Training starts tomorrow."

That's it? That's why I felt nervous? "Okay..." I said back, drawing out the word.

"It's not going to be the same, AJ," Kurama said. "This training isn't about getting used to your powers." I frowned at that. "You're going to have to learn how to properly defend yourself, and how to fight."

"What do you mean?" I asked. Why would I need to know all this?

"Do you remember that you were invited to the Demon World Tournament?"

"Yes," I said as I slowly narrowed my eyes at them. "By Mukuro." I had to force myself not to choke on her name.

"This isn't a normal invitation." He paused for effect, I think. "You have to do more than just show up. You'll have to take part in the tournament."

"Excuse me?"

"You're going to have to fight."

Hiei rolled his eyes which made me glare at him. God, he can be so irritating with that snarly attitude. He needed to learn to smile for once. All that negative energy is going to make him die early. So what? Another 2,000 years? Damn...

"Fight as in... other demons?"

"Yes. There are some who I know you can handle, I have no doubt about that. Others... Well, we're starting tomorrow for a reason."

Okay, the nerves are starting to kick in. I could feel my hands get sweaty and my heart start to beat faster but I tried my best to look calm and collected. It was only nine-thirty in the evening but the guys insisted that I go to bed. There was no way I could fall asleep now but I headed to my room regardless. As I started to remove my cardigan so I could get changed for bed, I felt something weighing down in one of the pockets. I reached in and felt... damn it, not again. My spirit of words... Okay. It's time to finally get this over with.

I pulled my sweater back on but kept the orb in my hand. At first I headed to the door but then thought better of it. I didn't want to run into anyone and have to tell them about this. Besides, they want me to be sleeping. So, like the rebel that I am-haha yeah right...-I headed towards the window. I totally felt like I was sneaking out of the house so I didn't get yelled at my parents as I started to climb out the window. Which I guess wasn't completely wrong...

When I made sure my balance was set, I jumped for the tree just outside my window. I actually landed gracefully for once, but that could be because the branch was only a foot away. Without pausing to think, I jumped down and headed towards the lake. I couldn't help but feel like I was being followed so I found myself looking back multiple times. Typical, I couldn't see anything so I just shook it off.

I knew I had to get this over with, so without delaying I turned to the nearest tree and threw the orb at the base of the trunk. All I could do was stand there and wait as I watched this weird liquid-like shadow raise up on the tree until it formed into what appeared to be half woman, half robot. So this was Mukuro.

"Aly-Jay, I hope this message finds you well." The sound of her voice caused shivers to go down my spine. "My name is Mukuro. It's nice to finally meet you. In a sense anyways. Unfortunately, I can't actually see you, or communicate with you. I understand you've grown up in a human lifestyle, so think of this as a voice mail, voice message? You get the idea, I'm sure." She paused for a second. "I've heard quite a bit about you, and if I'm being completely honest, I can't wait to meet you in person. There's been a lot of... rumours going around, and it's definitely caught my interest. A prophecy come to life, perhaps? Well, there's only one way to know for sure. You see, there's a tournament coming up in a year or so. Perhaps you've heard of it? The Demon World Tournament. I think it would be the perfect opportunity to meet you formally. I guess you can think of this as an invitation. Now, I'm sure I've wasted enough of your time. I look forward to seeing you."

I could only stand there as the shadow compressed down into nothing. She's heard of me? Rumours, what rumours? And where is this talk about actually fighting? It just sounds like she wants to meet me. I'm missing something... I can feel it.

I wasn't sure how long I stood there for, but it wasn't long before I realized I really should go get some sleep. With my mind numb, and over loaded, I headed back to the house, climbed through the window, and went to bed.

Three, maybe four, hours later, I woke up covered in ice cold water. I sat up gasping for air and completely alert. "What the hell?" I sputtered.

When my eyes finally adjusted, I saw Hiei standing in the middle of the room with an empty bucket at his feet. "Get up," he said as he continued to stand there. His expression was completely blank. Surprise, surprise.

I looked down at my soaked torso and lap then back at him. "Was that necessary?!"

"I said, get up." Hiei turned away from me for a second.

As I started to swing my legs off the bed, I caught a glance of the clock sitting on my bedside table. "It's four in the morning!"

I barely finished the sentence before Hiei threw something at me. "You have two minutes." And with that, he left the room.

Ass. As I glared at the closed door the time really started to kick in. I grabbed whatever Hiei threw at me and realized it was clothes. He had grabbed everything I needed for my training. Including my sports bra. I could only stare at it for a second. What do I make of that? One, how did he know where it was? Two, why even grab that?

Too tired to over-think it, I threw the clothes to the ground and went back to sleep. I had barely closed my eyes before I was splashed with more ice water.

"What the hell?" I yelled as I sat back up. I wiped my face to try and get some of the water out of my eyes. When they finally focused I noticed that it was Kurama standing there this time. "What?"

"Get up."

The look on his face and tone in his voice didn't make me question him. I quickly gathered the clothes from the ground and stood up. Kurama didn't leave until I paused when I reached down to the hem of my shirt. I changed as quickly as I could and made my way downstairs. Normally I would move rather slowly because I was so damn tired, but the look on Kurama's face had me hustling. I don't think I've ever seen him so serious, so... demon like.

When I reached the bottom of the stairs Yusuke called my name. I turned in his direction only to see an apple come flying at me. Thankfully I was awake enough to catch it before it collided into my face.

"Breakfast," he said. "Now sneakers. We're going for a run."

I frowned at him as I took a bite. "Don't you have to wait half an hour after eating?"

"Sneakers."

Whoa, what's with all the attitude? My frowned deepened as I held the apple in my mouth to put on my sneakers. None of them said a word as they lead me towards the forrest in the back of the compound. When I finished the apple and threw the core away for "composting" the guys looked like they were warming for a run. That's probably a good idea... As I started to warm up my legs, Kurama started to explain.

"We race. The last person to reach the top of the highest mountain has to do 200 push-ups."

They were off before I had time react in any way. Hiei was the first one gone, obviously, but the others weren't that far behind. Even Kuwabara wasn't that far behind from Yusuke. Before I got too far behind, I ran to try and catch up. I was already in the trees so I couldn't look up to see how far this mountain was. I could only hope it wasn't too far and that I could follow the guys. It didn't help that it was still dark out as well. I can't see shit!

After what felt like an hour-and yes, I was really feeling the burn-I tripped on a tree root. "Son of a-" I stopped mid-curse when I saw the root move. That's not normal... Oh, who am I kidding? This is Genkai's compound. I don't want to even start thinking about what would be in this forrest. And on that note, I was up and running in a flash. It's kind of funny what a little fear can do to you... not.

Just don't look back. Just don't look back. Just don't look back.

I didn't hear anything behind me so I allowed myself to calm down a bit. Unfortunately, that meant my muscles didn't have the will to fight either. Trying to ignore the pain, I really began to push myself so I could keep up with the guys. Speaking of, I looked up to make sure I was heading in the right direction. I couldn't see anyone. Crap... I looked behind me and I didn't see anyone there either.

Well... crap. Now what do I do?

At first I tried to see if I could catch a glimpse at the this so-called mountain but the trees were too thick and it was still too dark... or both. Damn it! Just when I was about to give up, I felt this weird tingle go down my spine. Something isn't right... In fact, I felt like I was in danger or something. I had to move. But why?

I took a quick look around and noticed this weird light in the distance. As it got closer, I noticed it had this weird blue tint to it. It actually looked like Yusuke's Spirit-gun. And it was coming at me, fast. What the hell? By the time I realized what was going on, I barely had time to jump and roll out of the way.

I was still on the ground when Yusuke came up to me. "No stopping."

"Was that your spirit gun?" I yelled back at him. The anger and confusion was really beginning to build up.

"There's no stopping. Now get up and keep running."

I got up and brushed myself off. "Okay, seriously, what the hell is going on here?"

Yusuke let out a breath. "You're going to take part in the Demon World Tournament. This isn't a little fight here and there. That fight I had with Yumi? It lasted [fill in the blank]. This tournament isn't going to be easy. This training isn't going to be easy. Now move."

I don't know what it was-exhausted, confusion, pain?-but I just couldn't bring myself to move. Yusuke brought up his finger and pointed it at me. I still couldn't move. It started to glow blue. That got my attention. I turned in the direction he was pointing at and ran.

I wasn't sure how long I ended up running for, but the sound of Yusuke's feet behind me never went away. It wasn't until the tree's finally began to lessen and the sun began to rise when I could finally see the guys up ahead. For half a second I thought I had finally caught up to them, then I realized they were just standing around... waiting. Damn... But Yusuke was still behind me so maybe I didn't have to do the push ups! DAMN, never mind.

Without warning, Yusuke flashed passed me and was beside Kurama in a second. Admitting defeat, and giving my legs a little rest, I walked the rest of the way. When I finally reached the guys, all I could do was pant at them. They said nothing in return. All they did was raise an eyebrow at me then look down at my feet. I sighed, and got down on my hands and knees. With the guys being total assholes, I figured I couldn't get away with whining...

Since I was tired beyond belief, I figured I could at least get away with doing the girl push-ups. When I started to lift my feet into the air, I heard Hiei say firmly, "No." I looked over at the guys in disbelief and saw something flash in his eyes. But it was gone before I could figure out what it was. Yusuke cracked his knuckles, Hiei pulled out his sword, and Kurama got out his rose whip. Kuwabara just stood there while trying not to look at me. At least one of them were still normal.

Refusing to make any sound at all, I adjusted onto my toes and started. It wasn't until I had reached the fifties when I really started to feel the burn in my arms. Eighties? I wanted to stop but the crack of Kurama's whip kept me going. Nineties? I couldn't even hold myself up anymore.

As I lay there, I heard Hiei step forward. What was he going to do? Chop me up? Fuck it, I was basically dead anyways. My arms and legs hurt so bad that they were basically numb. As expected, I felt the tip of his sword on the base of my chin. He dug it in and forced me to look up at him.

I felt a tear go down my cheek. I don't know why that happened, or how for that matter. All I knew was that I couldn't stop it from happening. While I could understand the harsh training, I couldn't understand why they were being total assholes about it. Yelling? Military, boot-camp thing? I get that. The threats? Attacks? Nuh uh. I'm done. I couldn't continue, both physically and mentally.

Hiei stared down at me for what felt like hours, but all of a sudden he just turned and left. With his sword no longer at my chin, my head just flopped back down onto the grass. I closed my eyes and just focused on my breathing. It wasn't long before I heard Yusuke and Kuwabara walk off. I didn't hear them speak but since these guys have known each other for so long, I doubt that they had to communicate with words...

I continued to stay where I was when Kurama came up to me. "I expect you can find your own way home." And then he was gone. Assholes. They were all assholes.

I don't know how long I was there for. Minutes? Hours? Days? All I did know was that I didn't want to move anymore. Unfortunately, that wasn't going to be possible. Obviously there were demons and things around. If they came and I couldn't defend myself? Yeah, I should probably head back now.

After taking a deep breath... and another, I finally pushed myself up and got up onto my feet. My whole body was shaking from the effort of staying on my feet but the thought of being attacked kept me up and had me walking. I could only walk, however. I had tried to move a little faster, just in case, but my legs wouldn't listen. But there was good news. I wasn't attacked during my journey, nor did I feel like I was being watched.

It must have taken me at least two hours to get back to the house. When it finally came into view I could smell food coming from the kitchen. I noticed the window in the kitchen was open when I finally got close enough. The smell of pancakes, french toast, and eggs made my stomach rumble so loud and so hard that the pain almost matched the pain in my legs.

When I reached the door, I had to pause before I opened it. I made sure to take a couple deep breathes to try and calm my nerves. Sure this training was going to be tough, but I did not like the attitude and threats. Even though it was probably-hopefully- and act, I didn't want to lash out at the guys.

I didn't open the door until I knew I was calm enough but I still didn't think I was completely ready to face them. After I entered, I went straight up the stairs, ignored the guys when they called for me, and went into my room. Without even thinking about it, I went to my bed and flopped on top and refused to move.

A minute later-or was it 30 minutes, an hour maybe?-I heard a knock on my door. I refused to acknowledge whoever was on the other side of the door. They knocked again, and I ignored it. Finally, whoever it was, just simply opened the door.

"AJ?" It was Yusuke.

I didn't look over at him when he took a seat at my desk chair. I couldn't resist, however, when I heard him place a plate on my desk. Admitting defeat, kind of, I turned my head and saw a large pile of pancakes and french toast with a bowl of fruit on the side. God damn, I'm so hungry.

"We need to talk about your training, AJ."

I looked over at Yusuke for a second before looking back at the food. Like what? How much of a pussy I am?

"All of us understand that you're upset with us." Hah, yeah right. "Even Hiei, I think." Okay, now I know he's lying. "But you need to understand us. We need to be really tough on you. The type of battles you'll go through at the Demon World Tournament aren't anything you've ever seen before. Sure, you've heard stories but you haven't taken part of any of it. Seen it. It's going to be tough, and the demons there wont treat you any different." He paused for a second. "You know how I battled Yomi? It lasted sixty hours."

Now my focus on Yusuke. When he noticed that I was looking at him now, he continued.

"You need to realize, there are rumours going around now. Rumours about you." I frowned at that. "That prophecy about you? It's gone out now. All of us having being trying to keep it hidden, a secret. But there's only so much we could do. Demons are whispering and a few fingers are pointing at you."

I couldn't fight it anymore. There were so many questions going through my mind. "Me? Why me? It's not like I've come across many demons."

"Maybe not, but you have met one with a large reputation."

It took me a second to realize who he was talking about. "Hiroto?"

He nodded. "I don't know how much you remember about that day, but you basically destroyed everything, and I do mean everything. Anyways, Hiroto had built himself a reputation, so when people started to look into it when he basically just disappeared. Anyways, you're basically first in line of suspects."

"I guess..." This all seemed so unreal to me. It's one thing knowing that you're a demon, then realizing that you've got some unusual abilities. And now having to realize that I'm so "special" that there are rumours going around? So "special" that I get invited to this Demon World Tournament and have to actually fight? This can't be really happening.

"Anyways," Yusuke said as he got to his feet. "I'm sure you're really tired." No shit, Sherlock. "I'll leave the food here, and there's more downstairs if you need it. Just... be aware that we will be tough on you. We have to."

I took a deep breath before closing my eyes. Yusuke took that time to exit. When I knew he wasn't within ear shot anymore, I tried to push myself up. Thankfully, I waited because I couldn't fight back the groan of pain. I didn't struggle as much as I thought as I got up and headed to my desk. I'm pretty sure it's just because I was so hungry. My stomach was pushing me to keep going. Good thing to, the moment I put a strawberry in my mouth I let a small moan of pleasure. That was all it took before I started to stuff my face. Who needs to be a lady when you're all by yourself, right?

When I was finally done and felt like my arteries were official clogged, I grabbed my plate and took it down to the kitchen. Thankfully, the house was empty so I took my time washing my dishes. Since it didn't look like there was going to be any more training at the moment, I went back upstairs to shower and change.

Once I was dressed casually, I decided to see if I could find Yukina and see what she was up to. I found her at the front of the compound, cleaning one of the main, open, rooms. Holy crap, has she been doing all the cleaning by herself? Looks like I know what we'll be doing together.

"Oh, no. You really don't have to do that," Yukina said after I asked her where I could find a broom.

My reply started with my hands on my hips. "Yukina, if memory serves, Genkai left the compound to both of us. If anything this is my responsibility as well."

There wasn't much she could argue after that, so I found myself a broom and started to clean. Since most of it just involved sweeping and dusking, it didn't take long to get it all done. And I'm sure it was also because Yukina was keeping it clean as well.

"Please tell me that you don't just clean all day here," I stated when we were putting everything away.

"Oh no," she said with a gentle smile. "I actually spend a lot of time with the Kuwabara's."

"Oh really?" I said with a smirk and a slightly raised eyebrow.

"Mhmm," she continued, completely oblivious to my expression. "They've been really kind to me. When Kazuma and Shizuru found out that I wanted to stay in Human World, they basically took me in. I'm so grateful that they did. I've learned so much, the life style, the food, and the clothing." She gestured to her "human" clothes. "I can never find a way to thank them properly."

That actually got me thinking a little. "If you're staying with them, why are you still here, cleaning, and everything?"

She shrugged slightly. "This is my home to. And it's like you said. I have responsibility here."

Just as I was about to open my mouth to reply, I felt this weird sensation go down my spine. Yukina must have felt it to because she went as stiff as me and turned into the direction I was looking at; the door. The sensation was hard to explain, it kind of felt like some sort of demon energy but... not. Kind of like it went in and out, like they didn't have any control over it, or they were confused by it. Is this what the guys felt around me?

Curious, I headed out the door with Yukina right behind me. I slide the door open with just enough space for Yukina and I to poke our head out. Apparently the guys felt this energy as well because Kurama and Yusuke started to walk towards our new guests. There were two young guys, both looking rather nervous and confused. I could only assume they were friends by how closely they were together as they walked forward.

It was Kurama that spoke first, typical. "Can I help you guys with anything?"

They looked at each other before one of them spoke. "We're looking for Genkai."

"I'm sorry," Kurama said gently, "but she's passed away."

The guys looked at each other again. They were more nervous now. "Oh well..."

Before they had a chance to turn away Kurama said, "Perhaps there's something I could help you with?"

"I don't think so..."

"Are you sure?" Yusuke spoke up. "Genkai was a sort of... mentor to me."

That seemed to calm them down a bit.

"Perhaps you guys would like a cup of tea," Kurama said as he motioned to the room we usually host tea to our guests. "Aly-Jay, I think you should join us."

I went stiff again. How did he know I was listening? Scratch that... it was a stupid question. Without wasting any time, I stepped forward and followed everyone inside and started making the tea.

Kurama didn't waste any time and went straight to business. I wasn't completely sure what my role was in this situation so I figured I'd just listen to them as I prepared the tea. It was obvious that these boys-they couldn't be out of high school yet-were really uncomfortable about all of this. At first they bounced around the topic and avoided all eye contact, but Yusuke was losing his patiences.

Just as they were about the deny anything "supernatural" again, Yusuke looked dead in their eyes and flared his demon energy. Judging Kurama's face, I could tell that was not what Kurama had in mind but since it was already done, Kurama exposed his demon energy as well. Luckily, that got their attention and shut them up.

One of them opened their mouth to start talking but then thought differently. He looked over at me. At first I didn't understand the look on his face but then I understood. It was clear that Yusuke and Kurama were demons, but what about me? If they think I'm human then they didn't want to talk about this kind of thing in front of me, for obvious reasons.

Since the tea was finally done, I went over to the guys and placed the tray filled with tea and cups between them. As I started the pour the guests their tea, I looked over at them with a soft smile while they returned it with a narrowed expression. Not wanting to expose too much of myself, I smiled at them again and unleashed my fire demon energy.

I watched them noticeably relax, which was good. Since I wasn't sure how much control I'll be able to maintain without unleashing my water demon energy, I quickly brought it down to nothing. I still wasn't sure what my role was in this situation, so once the tea was out I went to sit off to the side and to the back a little. The guys didn't really call on me again so I just sat there and listened.

The whole conversation was about the guys reassuring these boys that what they're going through was normal, kind of. Their main guess was that they have demon blood in their ancestry, which was only confirmed when they revealed that neither of them know who their father is. With demons sneaking into human world, I could only imagine that some are getting a little... frustrated and need some kind of release. I had to fight back a shudder at the thought.

With that part done, they moved onto talking about training. Kurama made sure that they would try to visit the compound a few days a week after school. I wasn't sure who would do the training, especially since they seem so focused on torturing me.

It was almost two hours later when the boys finally left with promises to come back on Monday. I stood with the Kurama and Yusuke as we watched the boys walk away.

Kurama didn't speak until they were out of sight. "You're probably wondering why I asked you to join us, Aly-Jay."

I nodded.

"We see a lot of this at the compound. People seeking help once they realized that they're special or cursed somehow. I can only imagine that it's going to be getting a little worse now that demons can venture into human world freely. That's how Yusuke got his demon energy."

Yusuke nodded to confirm.

"Anyways, with you being an official owner of this compound, you'll be responsible for guiding and teaching these people. You'll teach them how to control their powers and how to use them properly."

"Excuse me?" I said before Kurama got too far. "I can barely control my own energy, let alone train someone on theirs."

"We'll help you of course."

Oh yeah, that makes everything better. I could only stare at Kurama. I wasn't sure their help would be a good thing, especially since their _help _meant utter pain. Needing to relax, I went back to the house to take a hot bath.

Perfect idea actually since my legs still hurt like no tomorrow. When I had the water running, I made sure that it was as hot as I could handle. The steam forming on my mirror as I started to undress was a good sign. As I finally climbed into the tub I realized I was small enough for this tub to basically be a deep soaker. Who knew my height was actually a good thing. When I finally settled down and relaxed I did the only thing I could; I half sighed, half moaned in pleasure.


End file.
